SAUDIS INSISTING ON DEPOSING KING

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Oct. 31—Councils of the Saudi Arabian royal family and of religious elders meeting in Riyadh have resolved to depose King Saud and to proclaim Crown Prince Faisal as King, an official of Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry disclosed today.

The official said in a tele­phone message that Prince Fai­sal was confronted by this ac­tion when he arrived in Riyadh last night after a five‐day drive overland from Jidda. It was taken by the family and the ulema, a body of scholars trained in Moslem religion and law.

An announcement on whether Prince Faisal would accept the title was expected later, the of­ficial said. He said that his per­sonal opinion was that it was “90 per cent certain” that the Prince would accept, even though he has in the past re­peatedly rejected such pro­posals.

“He has been under great pressure for the last six months and will find it difficult to de­cline now,” the official added.

Similar though less forceful proposals that he take the title of King, as well as the power, confronted Faisal when he re­turned from a conference of Arab kings and presidents in Alexandria in September, and from a conference of nonaligned countries in Cairo earlier this month. He rejected the pro­posals.

In mid‐February Crown Prince Faisal forced his broth­er Saud to surrender all royal powers, but Saud retained the title of King.

Faisal's action was backed up by the same councils that have been in action again dur­ing the last few days. These are the council of the royal family composed of relatives of Faisal other than King Saud

In February, Prince Faisal declined to accept the title of king on the ground that it would set a bad precedent, placing Saudi Arabia on the same level as countries that have had coups d'etat.

He was also believed to have been deterred by an oath to his father, King Ibn Saud, who be­fore his death obliged his sons to swear to accept Saud as King. King Ibn Saud's idea was that Saud should reign but con­cern himself mainly with in­ternal affairs, while Faisal should deal with foreign policy.

This division of labor broke down in 1958. At that time the family for the first time called upon Faisal to take charge to get the kingdom out of trouble caused by King Saud's mis­management.

Except for brief periods when King Saud has reasserted his royal prerogatives, Prince Faisal has in effect been ruler ever since.

Beginning by curtailing the personal incomes of members of the royal family and restor­ing the kingdom's financial sta­bility, Prince Faisal has gradu­ally shown himself to be a re­former and a believer in eco‐ nomic development.

He has begun a vast road j building program, authorized steel‐making plants and en‐ couraged plans for the petro­chemicals industry. He has ed­ucated seven of his eight sons in the United States or Britain. The second oldest, Mohammed, is currently concerned with a project for desalting seawater with United States help.

By contrast, King Saud's sons, numbering about 40, have been given little more than an elementary education.

If Faisal should agree to re­moving Saud entirely, he would probably do so on the ground of health. The King, 61 years old, has made a long series of trips to the United States, West Germany, Switzerland and France for operations and other treatment for disorders of the kidneys, gall bladder and liver. He is now regarded as a semi­invalid.